Test Kitchen: Cookies for the Holidays

Cookies are one of my favorite ways to warm up the holidays. Being able to bake up some fresh cookies to share with friends, family and co-workers is very rewarding. There are many traditional cookie flavors available to play with during the holiday season and you can really never go wrong.

In our test kitchen, I baked up some Strawberry Thumbprint Cookies and one person commented that it was the best cookie she had in a long time. We have some people who eat gluten free in the offices as well, so I made sure they would not be left out by baking some Gluten Free Crispy Ginger Cookies. We hope you will enjoy these cookies as well!

Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the milk and combine thoroughly. Mix together the flour, salt and almond meal. Add dry ingredients to wet, mix to combine. Form into one-inch balls. Place ¼ cup of additional Almond Meal in a bowl. Roll dough balls in the almond meal, covering the entire ball. Place on cookie sheet, flatten slightly with palm of hand and press hole in middle with your thumb. Put in ½ tsp jam in each hole. Bake at 350°F for 15-18 minutes. Makes one dozen cookies.

*For a casein and dairy free version, replace the butter with soy margarine or shortening.

Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the vanilla and molasses and mix until thoroughly combined. In a separate bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, salt and spices. Sift the dry ingredients into the wet and blend until combined. Place ½ cup of sugar in a bowl. Form the dough into one-inch balls and drop into sugar to cover the outside of the dough. Place on greased baking sheet and bake at 350°F for 15 minutes. Makes 20 cookies.

*For a casein and dairy free version, replace the butter with soy margarine or shortening.